wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “automatic backup”
wp.org orders by popularity, so a plugin a host bundled onto millions of sites, or a big-brand one that's slow and mediocre, can sit at the top. Our ranking is built to answer a different question: which of these is actually worth installing. How this works →
For “automatic backup”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 of the top 20. 3 plugins are pushed down for signals wp.org ignores: errors, a host-installed base, or removal risk.
wp.org search ranks on
Install count (uncapped), the raw star average, freshness, and support. Popularity dominates, so the biggest install base usually wins regardless of how it got there.
We add
A cap on the install boost, volume-weighted ratings, and signals wp.org can't see: whether it throws errors on current PHP, whether the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Royal WordPress Backup, Restore & Migration Plugin – Backup WordPress Sites Safely shows at wp.org #12 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 9 places. Its 30K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 7 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Migrate Guru – Site Migration & Cloning places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 1645 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706)
wp.org #1 2 
Backup Migration 80K+ · 4.9★ (1338)
wp.org #3 1 too low 3 
Duplicator – Backups & Migration Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups, & More 1M+ · 4.9★ (4940) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #2 1 too high 4 
WP STAGING – Backups & Restore, Migration & Clone Plugin – Cloud Backups, Scheduled Backups 100K+ · 4.8★ (2470)
wp.org #6 2 too low 5 
WPvivid — Backup, Migration & Staging 900K+ · 4.9★ (1568)
wp.org #5 ↓1 6 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #4 ↑1 2 too high 7 
All-in-One WP Migration and Backup 5M+ · 4.5★ (7676)
wp.org #8 1 too low 8 
JetBackup – Backup, Restore & Migrate 200K+ · 4.5★ (1056)
wp.org #9 1 too low 9 
BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) not PHP-current
wp.org #7 2 too high 10 
BlogVault Backup & Staging 80K+ · 4.6★ (332)
wp.org #11 ↓1 1 too low 11 Migrate Guru – Site Migration & Cloning 200K+ · 4.9★ (1645)
wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too low 12 
Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962)
wp.org #18 6 too low 13 
Backuply – Backup, Restore, Migrate and Clone 600K+ · 4.5★ (135)
wp.org #10 ↑1 3 too high 14 
Total Upkeep – WordPress Backup Plugin plus Restore & Migrate by BoldGrid 40K+ · 4.8★ (442) throws errorsnot PHP-current
wp.org #13 ↓1 1 too high 15 
WP Umbrella: Security Backup Restore & Monitoring 90K+ · 4.8★ (81)
wp.org #14 1 too high 16 
Prime Mover – Backup and Migration 10K+ · 5.0★ (141)
wp.org #19 3 too low 17 
Post SMTP – Complete Email Delivery and SMTP Solution with Email Logs, Alerts, Backup SMTP & Mobile App 300K+ · 4.7★ (528)
wp.org #23 ↓6 6 too low 18 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint
wp.org #22 4 too low 19 
Backup, Restore and Migrate your sites with XCloner 10K+ · 4.2★ (129)
wp.org #20 1 too low 20 
Everest Backup – WordPress Cloud Backup, Migration, Restore & Cloning Plugin 3K+ · 4.4★ (45)
wp.org #15 5 too high 21 Royal WordPress Backup, Restore & Migration Plugin – Backup WordPress Sites Safely 30K+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↑1 9 too high 22 
Backup Bolt – Lightweight Backup, Fast WordPress Backup to ZIP 800+ · 4.7★ (13) thin reviews
wp.org #16 6 too high 23 
Automatic Domain Changer 10K+ · 4.3★ (29)
wp.org #24 ↓1 1 too low 24 
Menu Backup & Restore + Import/Export 500+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #21 3 too high Merit ranking caps the install boost at 1M (wp.org leaves it uncapped), replaces the raw star average with a volume-weighted Bayesian score and a Wilson lower bound, and keeps wp.org's own freshness and compatibility decays. Method from the plugin-directory source; see Meta Trac #8298. Positions are tracked daily from the first visit to a keyword, so the small arrows show movement since tracking began.